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ALL HE KNEW

Name: ALL HE KNEW
Author: Helen Frost
ISBN: 978-0-374-31299-2

by Helen Frost ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 11, 2020

An engaging, emotional read that tells an important story—with caveats.

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A young deaf boy faces the horror of institutionalization in the late 1930s and ’40s. This verse novel tells the story of Henry, who is born hearing and becomes deaf due to a fever at age 4. The school for the deaf erroneously labels him “unteachable,” and he is sent to an institution for the “feebleminded,” where the children face abuse and neglect. Henry’s story merges with that of Victor, a conscientious objector who works at the institution. Frost depicts one grim reality of deaf/Deaf life in mid-20th-century America in a way that is approachable for readers as she explores the rarely discussed story of conscientious objectors in World War II. The story is told in discrete poems, creating an episodic narrative that highlights poignant moments and delves into characters’ thoughts. All the characters are presumed white. However artful, the book is not without flaws. Characters repeatedly suggest that Henry’s institutionalization is particularly unjust because he is “smart,” an implicit comment on intellectual disabilities that is not adequately explored. The author’s note detracts from the story itself, raising questions that wouldn’t need to be asked otherwise, such as why the author gave Henry the ability to speak when the man he is based on could not. A sequence of poems by the author’s mother-in-law that inspired the novel are included and contain an outdated portrayal of disability that is presented without context or commentary for readers. An engaging, emotional read that tells an important story—with caveats. (notes on form and characters, acknowledgements) (Verse historical fiction. 10-14)

Pub Date: Aug. 11, 2020

ISBN: 978-0-374-31299-2

Page Count: 272

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Review Posted Online: May 16, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION | CHILDREN'S POETRY

- BOOK REVIEW
THE MIGHTY POLLINATORS
by Helen Frost ; photographed by Rick Lieder

- BOOK REVIEW
WAIT—AND SEE
by Helen Frost ; illustrated by Rick Lieder

- BOOK REVIEW
BLUE DAISY
by Helen Frost ; illustrated by Rob Shepperson

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THE CONSPIRACY

From the Plot to Kill Hitler series , Vol. 1

by Andy Marino ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2020

It’s great to see these kids “so enthusiastic about committing high treason.” (historical note) (Historical fiction. 10-12)

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Near the end of World War II, two kids join their parents in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler.

Max, 12, lives with his parents and his older sister in a Berlin that’s under constant air bombardment. During one such raid, a mortally wounded man stumbles into the white German family’s home and gasps out his last wish: “The Führer must die.” With this nighttime visitation, Max and Gerta discover their parents have been part of a resistance cell, and the siblings want in. They meet a colorful band of upper-class types who seem almost too whimsical to be serious. Despite her charming levity, Prussian aristocrat and cell leader Frau Becker is grimly aware of the stakes. She enlists Max and Gerta as couriers who sneak forged identification papers to Jews in hiding. Max and Gerta are merely (and realistically) cogs in the adults’ plans, but there’s plenty of room for their own heroism. They escape capture, rescue each other when they’re caught out during an air raid, and willingly put themselves repeatedly at risk to catch a spy. The fictional plotters—based on a mix of several real anti-Hitler resistance cells—are portrayed with a genuine humor, giving them the space to feel alive even in such a slim volume.

It’s great to see these kids “so enthusiastic about committing high treason.” (historical note) (Historical fiction. 10-12)

Pub Date: April 21, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-338-35902-2

Page Count: 192

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S HISTORICAL FICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
ESCAPE FROM CHERNOBYL
by Andy Marino

- BOOK REVIEW
AUTONOMOUS
by Andy Marino

- BOOK REVIEW
THE DOOR
by Andy Marino

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HERO ON A BICYCLE

by Shirley Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 23, 2013

A superb historical thriller.

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Thirteen-year-old Paolo Crivelli dreams of being a hero in Nazi-occupied Florence.

It’s a tricky business living in an occupied city. The Allies are advancing from the south, Paolo’s father is missing (thought to be fighting for the Partisans), and the Crivelli family is caught between the Nazi occupiers and the sometimes ruthless Partisans. This first novel by acclaimed children’s picture-book writer and illustrator Hughes expertly captures the tension in the Crivelli home, as Rosemary tries to raise her two children and keep them safe while covertly supporting the Partisan cause. Not so easy with a son like Paolo, who risks sneaking out at night on his bicycle, looking for his own way to be a hero for the cause. There are plenty of heroes here, as layers of resistance to the Nazis are carefully delineated—the obvious bold resistance of the Partisans in the countryside, Rosemary’s agreement to house escaped prisoners of war in her cellar, a lifesaving tip from the captain of the local military police and even a sympathetic member of the Gestapo who conveniently finds nothing when searching the Crivellis’ cellar. The townspeople, a dog and even Paolo’s bicycle play a role in the resistance movement, though the dangers and the realities of war are always tangible in this fine novel.

A superb historical thriller. (Historical fiction. 10-14)